Chapter 36

Severus led Harry to the bedroom. A small fire burned in the fireplace.

Severus would be a liar if he said he wasn't hopeful to have their physical relationship evolve tonight. But he knew how much Harry had been through. And they'd only been properly in a relationship less than a week. He could be patient if he needed to be. Just holding Harry was more than he could have hoped for.

Harry stood before Severus. His fingers trembled as he unbuttoned the top of his own robe.

"Should I...?" Harry began cautiously. Severus would love to watch Harry disrobe but he easily saw how unsure he was.

"Let us get comfortable for now. I have extra pyjamas if you'd like to wear them."

Harry smiled gratefully.

The familiar sound of a house elf appearing stopped Severus from turning towards his wardrobe.

"One night! One blasted night!" Severus waved his wand with irritation, opening the bedroom door. A house elf bounced nervously in the hallway.

"Sorry to interrupt, sir! The headmaster wishes to see you, sir!"

"Could it wait?" He growled.

"He says it is urgent!"

"Fine! I'm coming."

Severus ran his hands down over his face. The house elf disapparated.

"I apologize."

"It's fine. I understand. " Harry rubbed Severus's upperarm. "I'll walk with you."

"Are you sure? You could stay here and relax, if you want. I know you're tired."

"It's fine, I'll walk with you. It'll be like a role reversal."

Severus chuckled at the unintended innuendo.

The two walked in peaceful silence until they came to the entrance to Albus's office.

Harry waited in the corridor. Severus stepped inside.

Albus paced the floor, as he was prone to doing.

"Hagrid caught one of your students out in the forbidden forest this evening."

"I did a headcount earlier in the evening. All were accounted for."

"It seems one of them made their way out shortly after, then."

Severus sighed. "Which one?"

"Basil Jarvis."

"Of course it was. I'm trusting you've doled out a punishment and sent him to bed?"

"I'll leave that to you when you take Madame Pomfrey a vial of the antidote for Red Bat Mushrooms. She's already ran out, you see. He's fine for now, but it'll be time for his next dose soon."

"That fool wandered out, alone, into the Forbidden Forest to... what? Eat poisonous mushrooms?"

"Seems that way. I could find no motive. Whenever I questioned him he laughed like a madman."

"The mushrooms could have him feeling a bit inebriated or, more likely, is that he is a madman and this is a game to him."

Albus nodded, but Severus could see that his thoughts were not in this room.

"You could have simply asked the house elf to take the antidote to the infirmary. Why did you really call me here?"

Albus stroked his beard and peered over his glasses at Severus.

"How did you apparate through the wards earlier this evening?"

Severus hesitated. He didn't want to tell Albus about Harry's struggles. It wasn't his place. Still, he found no way around it.

"I didn't. I was magically summoned."

Albus chuckled as if that were absolutely absurd.

Severus sighed. "Harry pulled me through the wards. He's more powerful than any of us could have ever believed possible."

Albus's eyes widened in surprise.

"As I marked essays, Harry sat at 12 Grimmauld. He desired my presence. Then, without my involvement, I was pulled through both sets of wards and found myself standing right before him."

"An Accio Severus?" Albus mused.

"Effectively, yes."

"Perhaps ask him to think better of doing that again. If you'd had an audience, that would have raised many questions."

"It was unintentional. I cannot tell you more than that. I'm not sure even he knows more than that."

"He needs to learn to control it." Albus wasn't angry, but he looked deeply worried.

"We know."

Severus descended the stairs. Harry stood up from where he'd made himself comfortable on the floor.

Severus accio'd the antidote to him.

"I need to take this to the infirmary. One of my more... troublesome... students decided to have an adventure in the forbidden forest this evening."

"Sounds familiar," Harry laughed.

"Doesn't it just?"

"I can return to your rooms. I don't want to interfere when you have a student to care for."

Severus wrapped his long fingers around Harry's. "Actually, I'd like you to come with me."

Harry looked at him quizzically. He must have seen that he was concerned.

"It's the one who attempted to kiss me," Severus whispered. "I honestly don't wish to find myself alone with him again."

Harry took his hand and pulled him in the direction of the infirmary.

It was a new feeling, to so openly hold his hand without fearing being seen. He wondered how he'd ever doubted his ability to be this type of partner for Harry.

Harry released his hand outside of the door to the medical wing.

"Go," Harry mouthed. "I will be here."

Severus pulled the vial from his robe pocket and stepped inside.

The rows of beds were empty save for the last one on the left next to the largest window. The moonlight flooded in. Madame Pomfrey took the vial from him, cast the incantation and administered it to Jarvis.

She turned to Severus and pursed her lips. "I'll let you handle this one."

Once they were alone, Severus pulled on his professor mask.

"What in Merlin's name were you thinking?"

The young man laughed and turned his head to the side, his wavy hair falling across his face. His eyes were glazed over, and had to search a bit too hard to find Severus's.

"I was waiting for you," he purred.

"Do not make me repeat myself. I want to know what you were doing out after hours, in the Forbidden Forest, eating something that could have killed you!"

Jarvis pulled his hand from under the stiff white blanket and reached out for him. Severus stepped out of his reach.

"I knew," he began to giggle again. "I knew you'd come."

"Yes. I had to. I am your head of house, and I had the antidote you needed in my possession."

Jarvis hummed contentedly. He began to move his head and feet in mismatched rhythm as if he were moving along with a happy tune.

"Answer me!" Severus demanded, a bit too loudly, interrupting Jarvis's humming and dancing.

"I did, Severussssss." He slurred.

"Professor Snape!" He corrected. "And all you've said is-"

"-that I was waiting for you." He smiled coyly. "I had to get you alone again."

"Wha-"

"-you tease me constantly. The way you roll your sleeves up when you give us instructions. How you stick that tongue of yours out just a tad when you're thinking really hard. You can't pretend you don't know what you're doing to me."

"It's entirely unintentional, believe me." Unbelievable anger began to well up inside of him. He'd love to smack that drunken smile from his face.

"Didn't you enjoy our kiss?"

"Your assault, you mean? I can assure you I utterly detested it. I still have half a mind to have you expelled! But I loathe paperwork and you'll matriculate in just a few weeks anyways." Severus scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "I am at a loss for words. You nearly killed yourself in an attempt to get me alone so that you could continue your misguided and unwanted advances!"

The smile never slid from his face.

"I touch myself at night when I think about you. Maybe I could show you some time."

Severus opened his mouth to continue his verbal lashing but he was interrupted.

"Severus, will you wait in the hallway please?" Harry stood by him, smiling sweetly. "I'd like to have a few words with Mr Jarvis here."

Severus was taken aback but he conceded. He excused himself to wait in the corridor but he peered into the room inconspicuously.

Harry leaned over the student menacingly.

"Do you know who I am?"

"Yes, but you don't impress me."

Harry chuckled. He lifted his right palm towards the ceiling. Every flame from the dozens of candles around the room extinguished in unison. Harry clasped his hand tight and placed it in front of Jarvis. He reopened his hand slowly, exposing a perfect orb of flames in his palm.

"I just snatched these flames out of the air as if it were nothing. I did this without a wand, without so much as speaking a word. Imagine how easy it would be for me to remove your empty head from your body. I could, ya know. They call me the saviour. I could do it and face no consequences."

Jarvis suddenly looked significantly less pleased with himself. Harry released the flames like releasing a wounded bird. The candles were lit once more.

"I do not take kindly to others touching what is mine. Am I understood?"

Jarvis nodded, his eyes round as saucers.

Severus was in awe at the scene before him. He'd never seen Harry behave so aggressively. And it was in his defense, no less.

"Do you know what happens next?"

Jarvis shook his head slowly. "N-n-no."

"No?"

"No, sir."

"Well, then. Let me enlighten you. You leave Hogwarts in two weeks. I will marry Severus. You will never so much as look in his general direction again. And you will never breathe a word about our little visit, or else I will-" Harry twisted his hand in the air, as one would pull a cherry from a tree branch. The drapes around the room all twisted tighter and tighter until they snapped away from the windows. Jarvis squeezed his eyes shut and nodded.

"Good night," Harry called over his shoulder as he left the room. As an afterthought Harry twisted his hand over his head once more, replacing the drapes to their respective windows.

"Harry..." Severus wasn't quite sure what to say first. He had so many thoughts fighting to break free.

"Don't worry. I'd never really hurt him."

"I'm sure. But that was impressive."

Harry smiled shyly. "Thanks."

"And I think it's the answer."

Harry cocked his head to the side in question.

"Your uncontrollable magic..."